UXO Education and Awareness

A teacher gives a UXO safety lesson at Vang Vieng Primary School during a teacher training session. September 2015.

For the long-term implementation of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) education for children and their communities, World Education works in nine UXO-impacted provinces in partnership with the Lao Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES) to build the capacity of teachers, school principals, and pedagogical advisers to mitigate the risks posed by UXO. About half of all UXO victims are children, who find the ball-shaped cluster munitions or “bombies” while playing near their homes in rural communities.

The project raises UXO awareness through high quality, student-centered learning based on World Education’s UXO curriculum. Using an in-service training model, primary school teachers in grades 1-5 are provided with curricula, instructional support and materials such as a curriculum guide, a teacher’s drawing guide, UXO songs for classroom use, teacher model lessons, posters, and illustrated story books. The program also promotes activities including UXO action songs, games, role plays, easy classroom puppets, and pen and paper exercises providing practice in Lao language and math. The program promotes student problem solving and responsibility for reducing and preventing UXO accidents.

Outside of the classroom, the project supports raising awareness about UXO among students and their communities through puppetry performances. Through school-based puppetry workshops, troupes are formed in target districts and provided with training in UXO awareness, puppet creation, and performance. World Education provides support for these troupes to perform several times a year at community events and festivals. Currently, more than 70 puppetry troupes perform in schools and rural communities during holidays and other festive occasions, reaching tens of thousands of community members with UXO safety education. For the target districts which are chosen annually, roving puppetry troupes are supported for monthly performances throughout the district.

Follow the links below for information on World Education Laos’ projects in the area of UXO Education and Awareness: